One major criticism is that the DeKalb school board had a budget, but deliberately didn't follow it.

"We're working on improving oversight of the budget. Clearly some things have slipped through the cracks," said board chair Eugene Walker. "We're trying now to put in place better monitoring procedures, and make sure that the policies we have are compatible with our ability to monitor."

The board returns to the state board of education for questioning on February 21, and while board members have agreed to a consent order to work on their problems over 90 days, the state board gave them just one month.